The Global Challenge design team wanted to
ensure that this project would impact more than
the students who directly took part in this weeklong experience. It was intentionally designed
to elicit meaningful data that could inform curricular choices and student learning across grade
levels and content areas. When the project began
in 2009, teachers were very hands-on, providing
mini-lessons and models of what good problem
solving looked like and what made for effective presentations. However, teachers began to recognize
that they were over-scaffolding and directing the
students, and therefore the results weren’t always
indicative of actual student work.

Shifting to being “hands-off” was uncomfortablefor many teachers initially. It was not the norm toallow students to self-direct without offering sig-nificant guidance. What if they couldn’t do it? Whatif they failed? What if it was too hard? However,as teachers released control, they saw the payoff—greater student engagement, initiative taking, andautonomy—outcomes that we want to become morecommon throughout the school year. As a result,students emerged as stronger problem solvers,communicators, and collaborators. As one of thestudents commented, “I think one of the biggeststrengths I’ll be taking with me as a learner is theability to work on my own without the step-by-stepguidance given by a teacher. The Global Challengewas definitely a wake-up call to become a moreintellectually independent student.”Additional lessons the schools learned include thefollowing:n Students can be motivated to learn withoutgrades. They will work hard if the learning is chal-lenging, interesting, and meaningful—irrespectiveof grading. Students know from the outset thattheir job is to convince judges to fund or hirethem; this shifts the thinking from what could bea traditional oral presentation to a real-world per-suasive argument designed to sway the opinions ofrespected adults.n Student freedom should be coupled with clearlyidentified outcomes and expectations. When surveyedafter the challenge, students said they enjoyed theindependence of the project, but also liked havingoutlined expectations and criteria for an authenticpurpose.n Transfer tasks can provide evidence of missionachievement. The results of the Global Challengeprovide educators with useful data to measure howwell the students are meeting the district’s mission,and this in turn informs curricular, instructional,and assessment revisions. An important feature ofthe Global Challenge is that it requires studentsto transfer their learning to a “messy” problemon their own. Research tells us that learners trulydemonstrate understanding when they can apply ortransfer what they know or are able to do to a newsituation (Wiggins & Mc Tighe, 2011). It is throughauthentic tasks that we see evidence of true problemsolving.n Rubrics should focus on impact, not just com-pliance. When the task or project is authentic,use impact criteria, such as how effective studentperformance was in achieving the desired result—Via video conference, students sharetheir research on providing clean water to Nepalwith an environmental consultant. Previous page:Students present an action plan to help solve therotavirus crisis affecting Nigeria.